Vehicle door mirror

ABSTRACT

A vehicle door mirror includes a mirror housing accommodating an electrical component therein, a base member made from a resin, and a shaft having a cord through hole through which a cord that is to be connected to the electrical component is inserted, the shaft being standingly provided on the base member so as to pivotably support a base end portion of the mirror housing. The base member has a slit formed therein. The slit has an outer end opening on a side edge of the base member so that the cord guided out from the cord through hole toward the base member side can be inserted through the slit. A linking part that links paired mutually opposing side faces of the slit together via an inner end part of the slit is formed on the base member so as to have a shape protruding downward.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a vehicle door mirror comprising amirror housing that has a mirror housing recess housing a mirror and inwhich an electrical component is housed, a base member that is made froma resin and mounted on a side door, and a shaft that has a cord throughhole through which a cord that is to be connected to the electricalcomponent is inserted and that is standingly provided on the base memberso as to pivotably support a base end portion of the mirror housing, thebase member having a slit formed therein and the slit having an outerend opening on a side edge of the base member so that the cord guidedout from the cord through hole toward the base member side is insertedthrough the slit.

Description of the Related Art

Japanese Patent No. 3771773 has made known a vehicle door mirror inwhich a slit for inserting a cord is formed in a base member since, if acircular cord insertion hole for inserting a cord is formed in the basemember, the operation of inserting a cord into the cord insertion holeis complicated.

However, when the base member is made of a resin, in the structuredisclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3771773 the stiffness of the basemember is degraded due to a slit being formed in the base member, andnot only is there a possibility that the strength toward an externalforce will be weakened, but there is also a possibility that deformationsuch as twisting will occur in the base member at the time of moldingdue to the slit being present.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been accomplished in light of suchcircumstances, and it is an object thereof to provide a vehicle doormirror that can maintain its strength by ensuring the stiffness for abase member even with the presence of a slit and that can also suppressdeformation at the time of molding.

In order to achieve the object, according to a first aspect of thepresent invention, there is provided a vehicle door mirror comprising amirror housing that has a mirror housing recess housing a mirror and inwhich an electrical component is housed, a base member that is made froma resin and mounted on a side door, and a shaft that has a cord throughhole through which a cord that is to be connected to the electricalcomponent is inserted and that is standingly provided on the base memberso as to pivotably support a base end portion of the mirror housing, thebase member having a slit formed therein and the slit having an outerend opening on a side edge of the base member so that the cord guidedout from the cord through hole toward the base member side is insertedthrough the slit, wherein a linking part that links a pair of mutuallyopposing side faces of the slit to each other via an inner end part ofthe slit is formed on the base member so as to have a shape thatprotrudes downward.

In accordance with the first aspect of the present invention, since thelinking part providing a link between the pair of side faces of the slitvia the inner end part of the slit is formed on the base member so as tohave a shape projecting downward, it is possible to prevent the strengthfrom being degraded by ensuring the stiffness for the base member, whichis made of a resin, despite the base member having the slit, and also tosuppress deformation of the base member at the time of molding.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition tothe first aspect, a restricting projection portion is projectinglyprovided on a lower end part of the shaft at one position in aperipheral direction, the cord being sandwiched between the restrictingprojection portion and the linking part.

In accordance with the second aspect of the present invention, since thecord will not rise up through the slit due to the restricting projectionpart being provided on the shaft, it is possible to prevent the cordfrom being damaged or cut by ensuring that the cord will not besandwiched between the base member and the mirror housing when themirror housing is pivoting.

The above and other objects, characteristics and advantages of thepresent invention will be clear from detailed descriptions of thepreferred embodiment which will be provided below while referring to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view when a vehicle door mirror is viewedobliquely from the rear.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view when the vehicle door mirror is viewedobliquely from the front.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a base member and an electric retraction unitwith a mirror housing omitted.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view along line 4-4 in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing part of the base member.

FIG. 6 is a bottom view showing part of the base member.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

An embodiment of the present invention is explained below by referenceto the attached FIG. 1 to FIG. 6; first, in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, left andright front side doors in a passenger vehicle are provided with a mirrorhousing 12 into which a mirror 11 for viewing to the rear of the vehicleis fitted so that the mirror housing 12 can pivot between a raisedposition in which it projects sideways from the front side door and aretracted position in which it is retracted toward the front side door.

The mirror housing 12 is formed from a housing main body 14, made of aresin, having a mirror housing recess 13 housing the mirror 11, an uppercover 15, made of a resin, covering the housing main body 14 from adirection opposite to the mirror 11, and a lower cover 16, made of aresin, covering a lower part of the housing main body 14 from below; aside turn lamp 18 as an electrical component is housed within the mirrorhousing 12, part of the side turn lamp 18 facing a slit 17 for the lampformed between the upper cover 15 and the lower cover 16.

The mirror 11 is retained by a mirror holder, which is not illustrated,and the mirror 11 retained by the mirror holder is disposed in anopening of the housing main body 14, that is, an open end part of themirror housing recess 13.

Referring in addition to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, a base member 20 made of aresin is mounted on the front side door so that a seat base 21 made of aresin is disposed between the base member 20 and the front side door,and the mirror housing 12 is pivotably supported on a shaft 23standingly provided on the base member 20 at a position spaced outwardfrom the front side door. A base cover 22, made of a resin, covering thebase member 20 from below is detachably mounted on the base member 20.

An electric retraction unit 24 is housed within a base end portion 12 aof the mirror housing 12, the electric retraction unit 24 is pivotablysupported by the shaft 23, which is standingly provided on the basemember 20 and penetrates into the interior of the base end portion 12 aof the mirror housing 12, and the housing main body 14 of the mirrorhousing 12 is mounted on the electric retraction unit 24. That is, thebase end portion 12 a of the housing main body 14 is pivotably supportedvia the electric retraction unit 24 on the shaft 23 standingly providedon the base member 20 mounted on the front side door, and the mirrorhousing 12 is configured to be selectively pivoted by operation of theelectric retraction unit 24 between the raised position, in which itprojects sideways from the front side door, and the retracted position,in which it is retracted toward the front side door.

The shaft 23 integrally has a cylindrical portion 23 a that extends inthe up-down direction, a collar portion 23 b that protrudes sidewaysfrom a lower part of the cylindrical portion 23 a, and a cylindricalmounting boss portion 23 c that projects downward from the collarportion 23 b so as to be connected to the lower part of the cylindricalportion 23 a and the collar portion 23 b at three positions equallyspaced in the peripheral direction of the cylindrical portion 23 a.

The electric retraction unit 24 includes a gear case 25 pivotablysupported on the cylindrical portion 23 a of the shaft 23, and a cover26 joined to the gear case 25 so as to cover the gear case 25 fromabove.

The housing main body 14 of the mirror housing 12 is fastened to thegear case 25. Formed on a lower part of the gear case 25 is a firstbearing portion 25 a having a support hole 27 through which thecylindrical portion 23 a of the shaft 23 extends, the first bearingportion 25 a being pivotably supported by the cylindrical portion 23 a,and the gear case 25 being thrust-supported by the collar portion 23 bof the shaft 23. A cylindrical second bearing portion 26 a is formedintegrally with the cover 26, the second bearing portion 26 a beingfitted onto an upper end part of the cylindrical portion 23 a of theshaft 23 so that it is pivotably supported by the upper end part of thecylindrical portion 23 a.

The electric retraction unit 24 includes an electric motor 30 as anelectrical component that exerts power for pivoting the mirror housing12 around the axis of the cylindrical portion 23 a of the shaft 23between the retracted position and the raised position, and a drivemechanism 31 provided between the electric motor 30 and the cylindricalportion 23 a so as to pivot the mirror housing 12 around the axis of thecylindrical portion 23 a in response to operation of the electric motor30. The electric motor 30 is mounted on the gear case 25, the cover 26is joined to the gear case 25 so as to cover the electric motor 30, andthe drive mechanism 31 is housed between the gear case 25 and the cover26.

A clutch gear 32, which is part of the drive mechanism 31, is rotatablyfitted around the cylindrical portion 23 a of the shaft 23 whileabutting against the first bearing portion 25 a, and a clutch plate 33sandwiching the clutch gear 32 between itself and the first bearingportion 25 a is non-rotatably and axially movably fitted around thecylindrical portion 23 a. A coil-shaped clutch spring 36 is provided ina compressed state between the clutch plate 33 and a retainer 35 that isreceived by an annular latching step part 34 formed on the outerperiphery of the cylindrical portion 23 a of the shaft 23 at a positionclose to the second bearing portion 26 a.

In a state in which no external force with a predetermined value orgreater is acting on the mirror housing 12, the clutch gear 32 issandwiched between the first bearing portion 25 a and the clutch plate33 to thus be prevented from rotating around the axis of the cylindricalportion 23 a, and when in this state the electric motor 30 operates, theelectric retraction unit 24, that is, the mirror housing 12, pivotsaround the axis of the cylindrical portion 23 a between the retractedposition, in which it is retracted toward the front side door, and theraised position, in which it projects sideways from the front side door.

On the other hand, when a predetermined value or greater of externalforce acts on the mirror housing 12, the clutch gear 32 can pivot aroundthe axis of the cylindrical portion 23 a between a rearward tiltedposition and a forward tilted position while slipping between the firstbearing portion 25 a and the clutch plate 33, thus enabling the mirrorhousing 12 to be manually pivoted or the mirror housing 12 to be pivotedby collision or contact with another obstacle.

A screw member 38 inserted from below through a through hole 37 formedin the base member 20 is screwed into the mounting boss portion 23 c ofthe shaft 23, and tightening the screw member 38 fixes the shaft 23 tothe base member 20 so that the shaft 23 rises upward from the basemember 20.

The electric motor 30, the side turn lamp 18, and an electric actuatorthat pivots the mirror holder retaining the mirror 11 in the left-rightand up-down directions are housed within the mirror housing 12 aselectrical components, and a cord 40 connected to these electricalcomponents is guided out from a cord through hole 41, formed within thecylindrical portion 23 a of the shaft 23, toward the base member 20side. Furthermore, the cord 40 extends from between the base member 20and the base cover 22, through the seat base 21, and to the interior ofthe front side door, and a slit 42 is formed in the base member 20, theslit 42 having its outer end opening at a side edge of the base member20 (in this embodiment a side edge facing rearward) so that the cord 40can be inserted through the slit 42.

Moreover, the base cover 22 is integrally provided with a lid portion 22a that blocks an opening at the outer end of the slit 42 when the basecover 22, which is made of a synthetic resin and covers the base member20 from below, is mounted on the base member 20.

Referring in addition to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, in accordance with thepresent invention, a linking part 43 is formed integrally with the basemember 20, the linking part 43 having a shape projecting downward andproviding a link between a pair of mutually opposing side faces of theslit 42 via an inner end part of the slit 42, and in this embodiment thelinking part 43 is formed into a curved shape that protrudes downwardand bulges to define a structure that receives part of the cord 40therein and that supports the cord from below, as shown.

Furthermore, provided integrally with a lower face of the base member 20so as to project downward are an arc-shaped first rib 44 following animaginary circle with as a center the center position of three of thethrough holes 37, a second rib 45 extending in the vehicle widthdirection and having opposite ends connected to the first rib 44, athird rib 46 extending in the fore-and-aft direction and providing aconnection between the first rib 44 and the second rib 45, and a fourthrib 47 that is inclined so as to be positioned forward in going inwardin the vehicle width direction and providing a connection between thefirst rib 44 and the second rib 45.

The linking part 43 is formed integrally with the base member 20 so thata forward end part is disposed between opposite ends in the peripheraldirection of the first rib 44, which is arc-shaped. A recess 48 recessedin an arc shape is formed in a rear end part of the linking part 43 soas to follow part of the outer periphery of the cord 40, and the secondrib 45 is formed on the base member 20 so as to intersect the linkingpart 43.

Furthermore, at one position in the peripheral direction of the lowerend part of the shaft 23, in this embodiment one position in theperipheral direction of the lower end part of the cylindrical portion 23a of the shaft 23, a restricting projection portion 23 d sandwiching thecord 40 between itself and the linking part 43 is projectingly andintegrally formed so as to project further downward than the lower endof the mounting boss portion 23 c.

The operation of this embodiment is now explained; the slit 42 is formedin the base member 20 so that its outer end opens on the side edge ofthe base member 21, the cord 40 guided out from the cord through hole 41of the shaft 23 toward the base member 20 side being capable of beinginserted through the slit 42. Since the linking part 43, which providesa link between the pair of mutually opposing side faces of the slit 42via the inner end part of the slit 42, is formed on the base member 20so as to have a shape projecting downward, it is possible to prevent thestrength from being degraded by ensuring the stiffness for the basemember 20, which is made of a resin, despite the base member 20 havingthe slit 42, and also to suppress deformation of the base member 20 atthe time of molding.

Moreover, since the restricting projection portion 23 d sandwiching thecord 40 between itself and the linking part 43 is projectingly providedat one position in the peripheral direction of the lower end part of theshaft 23, the cord 40 will not rise up through the slit 42, and it ispossible to prevent the cord 40 from being damaged or cut by ensuringthat the cord 40 will not be sandwiched between the base member 20 andthe mirror housing 12 when the mirror housing 12 is pivoting.

An embodiment of the present invention is explained above, but thepresent invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment andmay be modified in a variety of ways as long as the modifications do notdepart from the gist of the present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vehicle door mirror comprising a mirror housingthat has a mirror housing recess housing a mirror and in which anelectrical component is housed, a base member that is made from a resinmaterial and configured to be mounted on a side door, and a shaft thathas a cord through hole formed therein, through which a cord that is tobe connected to the electrical component is inserted, and that isstandingly provided on the base member so as to pivotably support a baseend portion of the mirror housing, the base member having a slit formedtherein and the slit having an outer end opening on a side edge of thebase member so that the cord, guided out from the cord through holetoward a base member side of the shaft, is inserted through the slit,wherein a linking part, that links a pair of mutually opposing sidefaces of the slit to each other via an inner end part of the slit, isintegrally formed on the base member out of said resin material andconfigured so as to have a shape that protrudes downward below the sidefaces of the slit.
 2. The vehicle door mirror according to claim 1,wherein the shaft comprises a restricting projection portion which isprojectingly provided on a lower end part thereof at one position in aperipheral direction, the cord being sandwiched between a lower end ofthe restricting projection portion and an upper surface of the linkingpart.
 3. The vehicle door mirror according to claim 1, wherein thelinking part is configured to define a structure that supportivelyreceives part of the cord therein.
 4. The vehicle door mirror accordingto claim 2, wherein the restricting projection portion of the shaftextends downwardly into the base member and is disposed below all otherparts of the shaft.